Archive for May, 2017
Les Sœurs Boulay – Music From Québec Posted by John Bauer on May 31, 2017
Listening to la musique française (French music) is a good way to practice your French and have fun à la fois (at the same time). When you find un groupe that has a style you really you study all the time just by listening to them over and over. Les Sœurs Boulay (The Boulay Sisters)…
Back to the store . . . Posted by Tim Hildreth on May 30, 2017
… For a love story! Between the world wars (la grande et la deuxieme*), France saw the creation of three stores dedicated to providing convenience and savings to urban shoppers. All three offered products “for a single price” and their names played on that concept. While all three evolved over the years, Monoprix (Mono-price), Uniprix…
4 Fun Facts About the French Language Posted by Elizabeth Schmermund on May 29, 2017
You may know all about French grammar and have an extensive French vocabulary, but you might not be aware of some fun (and just plain interesting) facts about the French language itself. Here are four fun facts, some you may be aware of and some that might surprise you: 1.The French Language May Become The…
Celebrating Mother’s Day In France Posted by John Bauer on May 24, 2017
La fête des mères (Mother’s Day) has already passed aux États-Unis (in the United States), but it is just around the corner en France. The different dates can be confusing, but the most important thing is not forgetting les mères! While modern Mother’s Day is generally thought to have originated aux États-Unis, le village d’Artas…
Like a game of chess Posted by Tim Hildreth on May 23, 2017
A few weeks ago, I shared a picture of Marguerite de Valois, comparing her to the flower of the same name. Or at least that’s what I meant to do. Instead, I mistakenly used a picture of Marguerite d’Angoulême. Both women were Queen of Navarre (a region between present day France and Spain on the…
Back to the Basics: French Definite Articles Posted by Elizabeth Schmermund on May 22, 2017
Last week, we went over the basics of French articles. This week, we are going to dive more into French definite articles and the ways in which they can change when they are combined with prepositions such as à and de. In French, the preposition à means “to” and the preposition de means “from.” When they are combined with definite articles…
How Did France do in the 2017 Eurovision Competition? Come Hear Their Song Choice! Posted by Josh Dougherty on May 18, 2017
Another May, another Eurovision. May is that special time of the year in Europe where countries go to battle for the best song. Each country chooses a singer to represent the them, and both an official jury and the European public decide on the winner via a point system. You can learn more about the…